Wahine Magazine Shutters
Wahine magazine, a publication that catered to women in boardsports by encouraging a “just do it” attitude with its confidence-building editorial content and pictorials, announced last month that it has stopped publishing.
According to Wahine founder and editor Elizabeth Glazner, the publishing of the magazine is suspended indefinitely. Glazner said the decision came as a result of a highly competitive advertising market, although the company still plans to continue to update its Web site.
The decision to halt publication is no reflection on girls’ growing interest in boardsports, particularly surfing, skateboarding and snowboarding, Glazner said.
The magazine was born in the mid-1990s, when surfwear manufacturers began to launch action sportswear for women. The trend caught on fast and soon there was no shortage of apparel, but there were few magazines covering women’s boardsports as a lifestyle. Wahine launched its first issue at the U.S. Open surfing event in Huntington Beach, Calif., in 1995.
“The market is definitely increasing,” Glazner said. “It was apparent when we launched our first issue that there was a huge market of girls and women who are active in boardsports but were largely ignored by the manufacturers and media.”
The concept of a magazine that catered to women’s boardsports took off immediately. The magazine not only boosted confidence among women, but it also boosted sales for some action sportswear labels.
Wahine served as an important avenue for surf and sportswear manufacturers such as Quiksilver and Vans to reach the core women’s market not captured by other women’s advertising vehicles. “By tapping into the lifestyles of real women athletes, not only in surfing but in all core sports, Wahine has served as an authentic voice for active women’s culture and helped to elevate women’s participation in these sports to a whole new level,” said Vans’ marketing manager, Tracy Sherman.
Several other women’s boardsports magazines followed Wahine, including San Clemente, Calif.-based Surfing Girl and, more recently, San Francisco-based With It Girl (which also debuted an active sportswear line this month). The once wide-open market was suddenly crowded and competition for advertising dollars became fierce.
“If the magazine were subscription-driven, Wahine would be thriving again,” said Glazner, pointing out that the quarterly publication’s circulation was at about 40,000 prior to ceasing publication.
Glazner said Wahine Inc., which published the magazine, is considering licensing its brand name for clothing, entertainment and action sports–related events for women. —Claudia Figueroa
